Film and Propaganda

This analysis will look at four movies over time: Titanic (1943), Delta Force (1986), Gandhi (1982), Alexander Nevsky (1938). Alexander Nevsky is a movie from the Soviet Union, Titanic is from Nazi Germany, Gandhi is from India, and Delta Force is from Israel in collaboration with the United States. Each film was made with a specific purpose that plays across when the background is obvious. Alexander Nevsky is a film from the Soviet Union based on the tensions between Russia and the Teutonic Knights of what is now Germany. The time this film was created and released made it so that it mimics the tensions between the Soviet Union and the increasingly powerful Nazi Germany. The film also included clear anti-German language and the clear pro-Soviet Union language. The language was clearly praising communist ideals with phrases like “rise up for your people” (Alex Jensen). The 1943 film Titanic from Nazi Germany is a work of anti-Britain propaganda. Using the infamous sinking of the RMS Titanic, the Nazis hoped to create a film showing the greed of the British and turn popular support to the Nazis. Unlike the other propaganda films discussed the film was only released in Paris before it was locked away and never shown in Nazi Germany before the war ended. In the film Gandhi, the intent was to show the goodness that Gandhi brought in the movement for independence; the way that it was described was “messianic” (Arun Velamuri). The film acts as propaganda because it portrays Gandhi in one way, ignoring any aspect of his life that cannot be considered “good”. One sees Gandhi travelling around in only a loin cloth and inspiring the people of India in ways that none of his contemporaries had managed (Velamuri). Unlike Titanic, or Alexander Nevsky, this film uses propaganda in what can be considered a positive light. Instead of using the film to turn one’s opinion against something, the film is attempting to create or grow strong positive feelings in the viewer. Delta Force was a collaboration between Israel and the United States in creating a film about the TWA hijacking in 1985. This film is clearly propaganda due to the involvement of the Israeli military and retired US special forces (Reece Porter). Like two of the other films, it used inflammatory language against the hijackers, Shiite Muslims from Lebanon, and compared them with Nazis while playing up the goodness of the United States. Although the premise of the movie was based on an actual event, a lot of the American involvement seen in the film is fictional, and only there to increase the visibility of American support for Israel. The use of films as propaganda has been around as long as films have been around. Three of the films investigated were created with the intent to change someones opinion on something, specifically for the worst. This use of film was mostly successful since two of the movies were widely available to the target audience. Titanic did not even have the chance to be considered successful due to the almost immediate removal of the movie from circulation. As it was released at a time in the war where the Nazis were starting to lose, it would not have done much to turn the tide. The movie Gandhi diverged from the other three films in that it was meant to idealize Gandhi rather than tear him down. This difference is important because it shows that propaganda is multi-functional and can be used to emphasize positive aspects of a person or group without degrading another person or group. Propaganda through film is a much more accessible form than posters as it will reach a larger audience. By making the propaganda into something interesting and easily accessible, more people are going to want to watch it, where posters are more easily ignored.